1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an attachment structure for attaching a camera module in a housing of a portable terminal device. Examples of such portable terminal devices include cellular phones, PHS (personal handy phones), PDAs (Personal Data Assistants), and notebook computers.
2. Description of Prior Art
The use of portable terminal devices such a cellular phones that are provided with a small camera module has grown increasingly common in recent years.
Of camera modules of this type, there is a design available that is provided with an image pickup part employing CCD (charge-coupled device) and a lens part for forming an image of an object on an image formation surface. The image pickup part and lens part are mounted on a substrate to form a unitary structure. The image pickup part may be joined to the substrate by soldering, while the lens part is attached by screwing into the image pickup part via a thread groove formed about the inner periphery thereof, for example. As is shown, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. Heisei 05-323164, in a camera module that has been formed as a unitary structure in this manner, the image pickup part, lens part and substrate are connected in a strongly fixed manner, so that the strength of the camera module is increased.
However, when the above-described camera module experiences an impact load, that impact load is readily communicated to the entire structure, causing problems such as disrupting the image formation surface inside the image pickup part, negatively impacting internal parts of the camera module, etc. Conversely, if an attempt is made to reduce the transmission of impact load by decreasing the strength of the connections between the image pickup part, lens part and substrate, then other problems arise such as displacement of the optical axis of the lens part, and a deterioration in the original properties of the camera module. In particular, when the camera module is loaded in a portable terminal device, there is a high chance that it will experience an impact load from dropping, etc. of that device. For this reason, there has been a strong desire to create compatibility between the camera module's image pickup properties and its ability to absorb an impact load.
The present invention was conceived in view of the above-described circumstances and relates to an attachment structure for attaching a camera module, and to a portable terminal device employing this attachment structure, the present invention aiming to provide therein compatibility between the camera module's image pickup properties and its ability to absorb an impact load.